Home Tour: Melanie Duncan

It’s been a HOT minute since a home tour stopped me dead in my tracks.  Not for the over-the-top fabulousness of furniture, nor for the brilliant assortment of accessories and objets d’art but I swear Melanie Duncan’s home is a spitting image of how my LA pad’s developed over the past few months.  Matte gray symmetrical bookshelves, check!  Black and white striped upholstery, check!  Gilded gold ceiling, checkmate honey!  Great minds really DO think alike!

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Can’t wait to show y’all the FINAL reveal…We’re approximately 3 weeks away and counting!  Eeeeeek- sooo friggin’ excited!  You think I can call the RUE gals down to make a cameo??  Gotta rethink those dark walls so you’re not seeing double honey!

Hope your week's off to the most glamorous start!

Happy Monday my loves!

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Food Porn Friday- 555 East American Steakhouse

555 East reminds me of an upscale Ruth's Chris' with their piping hot buttery plates of steak and the ubiquitous wine chambers that line just about every vertical wall surface.  The vibe:  Jazz lounge club where much older cigar-smoking gentlemen hit on 30-something hotties (present company included) with a cocktail and a business card.  Oman I can still smell the seniors even amongst all that garlic butter!  Although I'm a TOTAL Mastro's gal myself, it's always nice to get out of the Bolsa bubble for a change of pace and scenery.  

I love that you can book 1 of 3 banquet spaces for any party over 10 peeps and dine in a private room set up just for you and your galpals.  We celebrated Caitlin's birthday with a smorgasbord of delectable sides (12 total!) and oh yeah...shared 1 piece of steak while we were at it :D

 

 555 East American Steakhouse

555 East Ocean Blvd.

Long Beach, CA 90802

(562) 437-0626

 12 girls ==> 12 sides ==> 1 steak ==> 1 lamb = 12 VERY happy bellies

HAPPY HAPPY FRIDAY lovies!!!

Hope you're eatin' good in your hood!

Bon appétit mes amis!

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Teensy little snippets of my everyday life…I’m always on the go and never stop to shoot and smell the flowers…but what goes on the blog…stays on my mind…

 House-made desserts from Bottega Louie in DTLA...

My new LA pad is located just a couple of miles away, so dangerous!

Their salted caramel macarons are an easy fave but those raspberry parfaits are KILLER!

Definitely digging into that green-tea/pistachio confection next time fo'sho!

One of my FAVE things about SoCal...alfresco lunching on the patio, curbside.

People watching in LA is sooooo friggin' entertaining since Angelenos are infamous for their individuality.  I'm not saying it's all pretty, but it sure does make random weekday meals that much more amusing.  My open-faced chicken pesto sandwich from Le Pain Quotidien on Melrose, divine!

When I'm not staying in LA my favorite wholesale flower shop in OC is OK Flowers in Westminster.  It's a super small mom and pop shop that always stocks exactly what I need for special occasions since I make my own bouquets.  What Moms got for Mother's Day:  2 dozen fuchsia roses, 1 dozen chromatic peonies, and a handful of tulips, re-styled after the initial presentation into 3 bite-sized arrangements.  She really deserves this every dang day!!!

Follow me HERE and see what it’s like to live in my very own designer shoes.

It’s starting to get mighty personal up in my feed…Hope I don’t disappoint!

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Mystery Dinner

I seriously CANNOT wait to start throwing dinner parties at my LA pad.  My dream guest list would read like a veritable who’s who of the 3 things I hold dearest to my heart:  Food (Anthony Bourdain!), Fashion (DVF!), and Design (Ms. Wearstler herself who created this killer tablescape for her own imaginary fête).  It’s just a damn shame that I’ve been wayyyy too busy with clients to even start catering to myself.  Wahhhhhhh!!! Designers’ dilemma y’all:  Every professional I know puts him/herself last.  Sound familiar, anyone?

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 Happy Hump Day my loves!!!

Hope it's been a superFAB week for you so far!

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Color Stories: A Case for Coral

When I was a little girl I used to exclaim with flashy exuberance that my favorite color was RED!!!  To most peeps red signifies a garish and often ostentatious existence, like you’re trying too hard to really stand out.  Be it with apparel and accessories, décor or design, red tends to overpower everything it comes into contact with.  I always felt that the confident color really stood for everything I stand for and still stand behind:  Power, drive, energy, and strength.  As I grow older (but far from wiser) I’m beginning to use the color sparingly, for understated impact with such an obvious instrument.  But nowadays when I crave the color crush in higher dosages, I rely on coral to tickle the fancy left behind from remnants of red still pulsating in my head.

 1, 2-3, 4, 5, 6-7, 8, 9, 10-11

As you can see, coral starts to become the “neutral” red could never be, replacing the brash with flashes of brilliance.  Whether paired with lighter pinks or darker pigments, coral takes on a sophisticated feminine beauty you can’t get with allover applications of red on red on red.  Maybe I am getting wiser after all, eh??

How would you use coral?  In the home or in your wardrobe?

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